2011 was my first year to NOT celebrate Christmas, and that caught some people off guard. When I said I was going to be obedient to God, and do those things He commanded alone - that caught folks even more off guard. One thing many Christians point out is that God and Yahoshua (well, they say Jesus) did it all and we don’t have to “earn” salvation. I agree, we don’t have to “earn” salvation, we can’t earn salvation. However, I am not craving simply “salvation”, I am craving relationship. I get that I am going to heaven and will have eternal life with Yahowah through the work of Yahoshua and the Set Apart Spirit – got it. However, I am not living in “eternal life” right now – I am here, on earth, in the flesh – and I crave some face-to-face time with my Father, the Creator of the universe. Amazingly, the Scriptures are clear that He craves the exact same thing – time with me. He gave a promise in His Word, there were so specific times on His calendar that he would make a “date” and any of His children that would – if we showed up, He would be there too.
Now, He is God – perfect, pure, and unblemished. So, there are some things that need to be finagled in order for us to occupy the same space. Unlike the “Occupy Wall Street” protestors, I can just show up with my tent, my trash, and my mess and expect Him to ignore the stink and settle in for some “us” time. In His Torah we find the things that help make us “ready” for the visit.
Being the amazing and loving God that He is – He gave each and every one of these times a theme. How cool is that! Each theme celebrates a particular aspect of the plan of salvation He put in place at the beginning of time. Each “date” each Set Apart Time we will be re-enacting or dress rehearsing for an part of the plan that gets us to the final destination – eternity. Think about that – every year He is having me act out the reminder of our path to the final step, how sweet it is to be loved by Yah!
Now, I know some people say “well, I don’t need special times, God is always with me”. To that I say “good for you!” However, I live on planet earth and we do things a little different here. For instance, I LOVE my husband, I mean LOVE Him. While we are always together (we have spent just a handful of nights apart since we have been married) I still look forward to “date night”. And I spend months anticipating things like our anniversary. While we are “always together”, there is something thrilling about celebrating a special moment. I am also a mother. Again, I am always with my kids – but I spend months anticipating their birthdays. I am busy buying gifts, planning meals, thinking about themes for a party and their cake. It doesn’t belittle every day that we are “together” but they have learned to anticipate those dates as much as I do. It’s a time set aside – oh, imagine that!
Just like my kids can’t quite keep from shouting for joy at the mere thought of their birthday arriving, I now feel the same way about God’s Set Apart Times. I know the theme, I know the dates, I just wonder what awesome things He has planned for these moments. I don’t know and I don’t care – all I know is that He is showing up and I would be a fool not to be there as well! Many people have tried to create their own times. They celebrate Christmas, Easter, Lent – heck, I have seen churches declare their own “revivals”. Okay. However, as much as my kids enjoy their birthday – they don’t get to move the date around as they wish. I don’t care if they sit at the kitchen table wearing a pointy hate and sign 10 rousing renditions of “Happy Birthday to Me” – if it’s not the date marked on the calendar, there will be no cake, no party, no gifts. And there is no way my husband would be willing to move our anniversary to the date of my first date with my high school sweetheart (you know, like how Christians “moved” the date of birth of Yahoshua to “coincide” with the Winter Solstice). Nope, God sets the calendar and I for one will be showing up for each and every party!
Now, I don’t have nearly enough insight to determine if you can be with Him for eternity if you don’t accept His schedule here on earth, that isn’t my concern at all. The point it – there were seven Set Apart Times He created and told us to meet Him there – every year. He told us He would show up for each of them, every time. Everything He has done on earth with Yahoshua and the Set Apart Spirit were done during His Set Apart Times that have been fulfilled (Passover, Unleavened Bread, First Fruits, and Seven Sevens) – why on earth (yes, while you are here on earth) would you risk not being there for the last three appointed times yet to be fulfilled (Trumpets, Reconciliation, and Tabernacles).
We are to celebrate each feast annually – to remind us of what He has done and what He will do. He is a God of His Word and He told us He would be there. The question is, will you?
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